Not everybody wants kids, and that’s fine!
“We really want to understand these child-free people a little bit better.”
A 2021 study co-led by Watling Neal analyzed data from a representative sample of almost 1,000 adults.
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These questions are significant in that they establish the contexts of different non-parent circumstances.
Child-free individuals, however, were found to be more liberal than parents and other types of non-parents.
Some peoplewomen, especiallyhave a difficult time grasping that the freedom now exists tochoose something different, she notes.
“This may be frightening or disconcerting for traditionalists,” Ambardar says.
“Children do bring joy, but so do a lot of other things.
Those other things weren’t available to women in the past but they are now.”
And with that push, opting out of parenthood has continued to gain popularity.
Ambardar points to the acceptance of choice as the biggest generational difference.
Lacking the urge to have children does not indicate a flaw.
“Your intuition won’t steer you wrong.
If your gut is telling you that you don’t want children, there is probably a good reason.
Maybe your heart has another vision for your life.
It would be unfair to you to not follow your heart and desires.”
Watling Neal J, Neal ZP.Prevalence and characteristics of childfree adults in Michigan (USA).PLoS ONE.
2021;16(6):e0252528.
doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0252528
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Births: provisional data for 2020.
